UAE Workers: Legalise Or Leave

As Dubai's white-collar crowd goes for an early morning jog shortly after sunrise, an army of illegal workers rush on foot or on bicycles to the port watching for signs or calls from dhow staff for a loading job.

The workers' expressions while waiting for a job-call from the dhow crew reveal a mix of hope and fear. Rough hands and wrinkled foreheads offer clues to a life that has tackled the sizzling summer sun of Dubai.

Haidar Khan, 27, makes Dh30 a day carrying back-breaking loads onto dhows berthed on the Dubai Creek.

“I didn't find any other job except loading goods onto dhows for a daily wage,'' said Khan.

The docks are witness to the harsh life lived by Khan and hundreds of undocumented workers like him. He has been stationed here for the past 12 months, working illegally loading dhows bound for ports in Africa, after paying Dh3,000 to his recruiters in Karachi.

“I left my wife and four children in Pakistan hoping that I could earn more money to support them there,'' Khan said.

Kojman, 26, Khan's compatriot who paid the same amount to recruiters, has also been working illegally for six months in Dubai.

Khan and Kojman's friends and relatives, most of them also staying illegally in the country, helped them find a job and accommodation where they stay 10 to a room.

Mohammad, 40, also a Pakistani, paid a fortune to come here four years ago on a visit visa.

“No one asked me about my residence visa or labour card or any papers to work,'' Mohammad added.

Illegal workers are available in the port area 24 hours a day, with the grass for their beds, public washrooms for their toilets and the port cafeterias for their dining table. Though they have no legal documents, they usually have no problems finding a job on daily wages.

However, when the police come anywhere close, the illegal workers disappear in minutes.

On June 3, the UAE Cabinet announced an amnesty for the estimated 300,000 illegal workers in the country. The workers have three months to try and rectify their status or leave the country without being penalised.

Iqbal, a Bangladeshi in his 20s, is excited to go back to see his family during the Eid holidays after two years of working illegally in Dubai.

He said: “I can't send money to my family on a regular basis. I don't have a fixed salary and sometimes I stay the whole day lying on the grass with no work to do.''

Life on the run

Azar hussain, 29
Azar Hussain survived 22 days with just Dh7 in his pocket after he ran away from his employers four years ago. Now, he is ready to go home, thanks to the three-month amnesty. “Agents in the UAE fleece us by charging Dh5,000 or more with the promise that they will send us back home. Everyone exploits us, especially labour supply companies who promise to pay us at the end of two months but threaten to call the police when we ask for our dues. “We live in constant fear – fear of not getting paid, of being exploited or getting caught.''

Mohammad Mansouf Ali, 31
“I have been longing to see my wife and two children but I was always afraid because I knew that I would have to pay a hefty penalty or serve a jail sentence,'' Ali said. He has worked illegally in the UAE for 3 years. Ali's agent ran off with Dh6,500 and his passport. “I never approached the embassy earlier because I was scared,'' said Ali.
“Last year my children missed an academic year because the labour company refused to pay my one-month's salary. I was desperate but I let it go because they threatened to hand me over.''

Mohammad Rafiq, 22
Rafiq, a Pakistani illegal worker says the amnesty has no meaning. “I have 10 people to take care of and loans over my head so I cannot go back just yet,'' he said. “Sometimes when we illegals do not have work, we stay inside our quarters for days together. I work from 5am to 2pm but I never leave the accommodation afterwards because of the fear of being caught. I know that life may not be so merciful again and I may get caught later.''

Hafiza Alam, 35
The illegal Bangladeshi immigrant says she was lucky to escape during the 2003 amnesty but was back in Dubai eight months later on a housemaid's visa. As a single mother and the sole breadwinner for her family, Alam said this was her only alternative. “I left my one-year-old baby with my mother and came to Dubai 16 years ago. I lived the last ten years as an illegal worker.''

Getting out

Indian Consulate procedure:

• Expatriates who have a valid passport can approach the Dubai Naturalisation and Residency Department.
• To assist those without passports, the Consulate General of India, Dubai, has set up collection centres in Dubai and the northern emirates to collect applications for emergency certificates.
• For more details call the helpline, 050-429 3269, operating from 9am to 5pm Sundays-Thursdays from June 11.

Pakistani Consulate procedure:

• All Pakistani expats wanting amnesty must contact the Pakistani embassy.
• Depending on individual cases, the consulate will either issue an outpass or send them back on a general passport.
• At the moment the Pakistani consulate has not set up any collection centre or any inquiry number because they have been able to cope with the number of applicants, an official said.